Guided Reading 101

What is guided reading?
It is a small group lesson, typically involving 3-6 children who are reading at the same reading level.  The teacher supports the students' print negotiation and comprehension work with texts at their instructional level.  The teacher introduces the new book, provides opportunities to practice reading strategies, and coaches each student.  The guided reading lesson should be 10-15 minutes.  It is often used to move students from one level of texts to the next.

What texts are used in guided reading?
The teacher carefully selects the texts to meet the students' needs and instructional level.  Multiple copies (one for each child in the group) of leveled texts are used.

What are the parts of guided reading?
Book Introduction
     -The teacher should cover the following areas: title, author, front cover, a few prior knowledge
       questions, picture walk, summary, call attention to a challenging part.  It is important that the teacher
       leaves something for students to work on.
Reading/Prompting/Coaching
      -Children read independently.
      -Stagger starts.  In other words, wait a few seconds before allowing each child to start reading.  This
       way children are forced to rely on strategies when they encounter difficulties with the text instead of
       waiting for the child sitting next to them to read it for them.
       -Be sure to check in with each student.
       -Give lean prompts. (See below for a list of prompts for each reading level.)
       -Listen in for possible teaching points.
Brief Discussion of Text
       -Quick check of comprehension.
Teaching Point
       -Demonstrate (often with white board).
       -The teaching point should be efficient and explicit.  It should also be applicable to future reading
         work.


Why teach guided reading?

• Allows teachers to teach efficiently.
• Provides our students with individual support and reinforcement.
• Offers students challenges and allows them to try our their strategies and successfully "have a go".
• Gives teachers opportunities to observe and access each child's reading.
• Gives teachers direct access to students and their progress.
• Builds community.
• Creates connections.
• Supports students in becoming more independent. 

Children who are learning to read need to:

• Enjoy reading even when texts are challenging. 
• Be successful even when texts are challenging. 
• Have opportunities to problem-solve while reading.
• Read for meaning even when they must do some problem solving.
• Learn strategies they can apply to their reading of other texts. 
• Use their strengths. 
• Have their active problem solving confirmed.
• Use what they know to get to what they do not yet know.
• Talk about and respond to what they read.
• Expand their knowledge and understanding through reading.
• Make connections between texts they have read and between their own world knowledge and reading. 

Shared by Ellen Ellis.  Sources: Kathy Collins, Joe Yukish, and Guided Reading Fountas and Pinnell.

Guided Reading Prompts for Reading Skills, Strategies, and Habits 
(Fountas and Pinnell Levels A-K)  


Level A&B

Level C&D

Level E

Level F&G

Level H&I

Level J&K

Race to the Top Q&A

“NCLB is a CD in an ipod world.”

What is Race to the Top?

Under the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, aka the federal stimulus act, two important and unprecedented education initiatives were adopted. First, it allocated about $100 billion in additional funding for education (largest sum allocated to education EVER). Second, it contained a number of provisions targeting the improvement of education for low income and minority students.

What will RTTT emphasize?

-Designing and implementing rigorous standards and high-quality assessments.

-Attracting and keeping great teachers and leaders in American’s classrooms.

-Supporting data systems that inform decisions and improve instruction.

-Using innovation and effective approaches to turn-around struggling schools.

-Demonstrating and sustaining education reform.

What are the four assurances?

In order for states to be eligible to receive federal aid in education, each governor submitting an application must provide assurances that the state will:

a) take actions to improve teacher effectiveness and to address inequities in the distribution of effective teachers between and high and low-poverty schools;

b) establish a longitudinal data system to track student progress and improve educational practice

c) take steps to improve state academic standards and the quality of academic assessments it administers

d) provide intensive support and effective interventions in low-performing schools

How much money is in the pot?

The largest pot of education money provided by ARRA is the approximately $48.3 billion earmarked as State Fiscal Stabilization Fund, which is intended to mitigate anticipated cutbacks in funding for public schools and public postsecondary institutions and related job losses. The Act provides the states an additional $13 billion for economically disadvantaged children under the Title I of Elementary and Secondary Education Act and $12.2 billion more for students with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. The Act also includes a number of smaller programs, including an additional $5 billion in discretionary grants that the Department will be distributing under a RTTT Incentive Fund and a separate Innovation Fund. This report will focus on the three largest programs ESF, Title I, and IDEA.

What is the I³ fund?

The Invest in Innovation fund, or I³, is an additional $650 million in “seed money” for districts to implement promising educational ideas. This money will go toward school district and nonprofit programs or partnerships that can demonstrate evidence of success and are capable of being replicated on a large scale.

When will Race to the Top take place?

The Race to the Top competition will be conducted in two rounds. The first deadline was January 19, 2010 and the second deadline will be on June 1. The winners will be announced in April and September of 2010. To be eligible to compete, states must have their second round State Fiscal Stabilization applications approved by the U.S. Department of Education and not have any legal, statutory, or regulatory barriers to linking data on student achievement or student growth to teachers and principals for evaluation purposes.

Which states submitted an application to the first deadline?

Here’s a list of states that submitted applications to compete in Phase 1 of Race to the Top:

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, D.C., Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming

How will the money be divided among the winners?

The amount each state receives depends on the state’s share of the national population of children ages 5 to 17. For example, California, New York, Florida, and Texas potentially qualify for an award between $350 to $700 million in federal aid. Less populated states, including Montana, Idaho, Rhode Island, North and South Dakota, would potentially qualify for an award between $20 to $75 million.

Why did some states not participate?

39 states and the District of Columbia submitted an application. Some states, like Montana, believe that the prescribed options for school turnarounds wouldn’t be applicable in their state due to the rural nature of the population. Those states that did not participate in the first deadline, and those states which lost from round one, will be able to apply in round two.

The Matthew Effect, or in other words, the Achievement Gap

As the vocabulary gap among students widens and texts become more complex, vocabulary knowledge becomes a critical determinant of successful comprehension, and, ultimately, successful reading.

While the Matthew Effect is nothing new in terms of vocabulary instruction, I thought I would address the history of the term. According to Hugh W. Catts and Allan G. Kamh (2005), the term comes from a biblical passage in the book of Matthew that comments on how the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

Children entering kindergarten every year have remarkable differences in vocabulary knowledge. Some children have countless hours of exposure to various types of print and a wealth of rich, supportive oral language experiences. Other children have limited experiences with print and oral language. It is estimated that by the time children reach second grade, children with strong vocabularies know approximately 4,000 more root words than their peers. Furthermore, children experiencing delays in vocabulary growth are less likely to develop their vocabulary knowledge through independent reading and are at significant risk for experiencing reading and learning difficulties. Ultimately, these students will be labeled as having a language or reading disability.

What the Research Says:

*Vocabulary knowledge is one of the best indicators of verbal ability.

*Vocabulary difficulty strongly influences the readability of text.

*Teaching the vocabulary of a selection can improve students’ comprehension of that selection.

*Growing up in poverty can seriously restrict the vocabulary children learn before beginning school and can make attaining an adequate vocabulary a challenging task.

*Disadvantaged students are likely to have substantially smaller vocabularies than their more advantaged classmates.

*Lack of vocabulary can be crucial factor underlying the school failure of disadvantaged students.

(Graves and Watts-Taffe, 2002)

Types of Vocabulary Instruction

Implicit- exposing student to unknown words through the use of read-alouds and shared reading experiences. However, students with lower vocabularies are less likely than their peers with higher vocabularies to learn words incidentally while listening to stories.

Embedded- explanations of vocabulary words when encountered during shared storybook readings. Explanations usually include using a simpler synonym, role playing to acting out the word’s meaning, or pointing to a picture that illustrates the word’s meaning.

Extended- is characterized by explicit, conspicuous teaching that includes using both contextual and definitional information, giving multiple exposures to target words in varied contexts, and encouraging deep processing. For example, teachers may explore the word “cauldron” by asking the following questions:

1. What does “cauldron” mean? (Open-ended questions measure students’ expressive definitional knowledge.)

2. Is “cauldron” a big pot? Is “cauldron” a mean person? (These types of questions, restricted to ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers, provide information about students’ receptive definitional knowledge.)

3. Can a “cauldron” talk? Can you put water in a “cauldron”? (These types of questions, restricted to ‘yes’ or ‘no’ responses, provide information about students’ contextual understanding of the word.)

(Coyne, McCoach, & Kapp, 2007)

While extended instruction results in greater word learning than does embedded instruction, this does not mean that embedded instruction should not be included in the literacy block. Given the amount of words students are expected to know by the time they graduate high school, it is important for teachers to carefully determine which words to teach. This involves prioritizing word lists. While the word “superfluous” is an excellent example of robust vocabulary, the word “radius” may play a more significant role in the academic setting, and therefore, may require more attention from teachers. Since the word “radius” has multiple meanings, i.e. the line segment from the center of a circle to the perimeter, or a bone located within the human forearm, it should be taught using extended instruction. While the word “superfluous” would be taught through embedded instruction. Teachers must be intentional and purposeful in their planning and teaching of vocabulary. And as always, discretion is advised.

Excellent Resources for Teachers

Article

Coyne, M.D., McCoach, B., Loftus, S., Zipoli, R., Jr. & Kapp, S. (2009). Direct vocabulary instruction in Kindergarten: Teaching for breadth versus depth. The Elementary School Journal, 110, 1-18.

Book

Beck, I. L., Kucan, Linda, & McKeown, M.C. (2002). Bringing Words To Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction. New York. The Guilford Press.

Websites

Flocabulary

Read Write Think Game